The Royal Road to Card Magic DVDs & Book

I've spent around two decades practicing sleights of hand, flourishes and card tricks. Nearly every thing I have learned is in the Royal Road to Card Magic, a book first published in 1949 and written by Jean Hugard and Frederick Braue.

I have struggled and struggled with what I felt were poor illustrations and overly complex descriptions to learn many of the secrets housed in this famous book. No more! I was recently introduced to a 6 DVD demonstration of the book that clearly and easily shows each move!

I've spent a few hours with the DVD set and I'm very happy! The set is filling in gaps where I felt the book was incomprehensible. I'd skipped a number of tricks where lack of a strong visual made it impossible for me to learn. I'm picking things up very quickly! I'm thrilled!

For beginners I highly recommend both a copy of the book and the DVDs.

10 Responses to “The Royal Road to Card Magic DVDs & Book”

You are very right! I learned a lot when I lived in LA and had the Magic Castle as a resource. Here in the bay area I’ve had less luck but have been looking for a magician to act as a coach! Trying the IBM is a great idea and I will.

Totally agree with ‘oasisob1′, join a local Ring of the IBM, International Brotherhood of Magicians. I think we have forgotten the great old fashioned idea of mentoring and apprenticeship. The Web is great for finding quick answers and learning some things, but people to people you will find ‘little details’ that I don’t think you will find via books or electronic media. Not to be funny, but learning magic is more than what just ‘meets the eye.’ After you have learned a foundation from people practicing the art, books and other media are a great way of advancing, but to build the foundation I think a club is THE ONLY way to go. They usually have lectures from professionals from time to time and you will be astounded at some of the ‘secrets’ you will learn/gain. I am a former member of IBM Ring 161 (Horace Marshall Ring) Akron, Ohio.

However, my local magic group requires that you perform magic the third time you attend a meeting. Ridiculous for a beginner and I’ve never made the effort to attend. I was listening to an interview with Eugene Burger recently who was critical of this practice. There are many reasons to be interested in magic. Only those who want to perform should be required.

While an instructional video seems interesting. It’s the royal road to card magic. Great book! It’s where I started. But it’s where I started. There was not anything that complicated in royal road to card magic. In more advanced books I find myself looking at illustrations trying to figure out what is going on.

Unfortunately clubs are not always local to people who are interested. I am more than an hour from any IBM group. I like magic and would like to improve, but it is just a hobby.

I can’t vouch for any other them personally but R. Paul Wilson is one of the leading experts in card magic and gambling and is an excellent teacher, too. The producers, L&L Publishing, are quite well known and respected in the magic world. This is probably the reference standard and it’s where I’d start.

This thread on The Magic Cafe has further discussion and opinions (mostly coalescing around R. Paul Wilson’s DVDs as the one to get): http://themagiccafe.com/forums/viewtopic.php?topic=257970&forum=2

As for magic clubs, I certainly recommend looking into the local club in your area. The two major national clubs with local chapters are the International Brotherhood of Magicians (I.B.M.) and the Society of American Magicians (S.A.M.). Just be aware the clubs are often filled with old hangers-on who know very little about magic and wouldn’t know a modern, meaningful presentation if it smacked them on the top hat. The best thing about clubs is they can help you find the handful of people who really know what’s going on.